Golf ball dispensing and teeing machine



L. J. WILLCOX April 23,1957 I 2,789,824

GOLF BALL DISPENSING AND TEEI NG MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 14,1952 I'IIII A g "u M SUPPLY:

Wirmss MM A ril 23, 1957 v L. J. WILLCOX 2,789,824

GOLF BALL DISPENSING AND TEE-ING MACHINE Filed Nov. 14, 1952 2Sheets-Sheet 2 -32 ee 52 A 68 Z lk 78 I fflvznloz M [Miami Villcox awn:y 9 4w M lworngys' United States Patent GOLF BALL DISPENSING AND TEElN GMACHENE Leland James Willcox, Des Moines, Iowa Application November 14,1952, Serial No. 320,445

3 Claims. (Cl. 273-201 My invention relates to golf practice ranges.Specifically I have invented a machine that automatically presents oneball at a time, properly teed, to the customer of a range.

Until rather recently most golf practice ranges merely presented acustomer with a container full of balls which were manually extractedand teed by hand. Within the last few years, however, machines forautomatically teeing the balls one at a time have come into existence.Most of these machines have been rather complex devices that have notbeen entirely reliable in operation. While these machines when operatingcorrectly resulted in a quantity of balls being used up faster thanwould be true for the same number of balls teed manually, they oftenbecame inoperative through mechanical failure. An inoperative machinecaused one practice site to be useless and hence the net result of theseearly machines was often a loss as compared to the same range operatingwithout machines. Furthermore, the rather complex early machines wereexpensive to build and maintain.- There have been many improvements inthe machines since their inception.

Nevertheless, the machines known to me, aside from my present invention,are relatively complex to construct, adjust and maintain.

In view of the foregoing, it is the principal object of my invention toprovide a simplified automatic golf ball dispensing and teeing machine.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a golf ball dispensingand teeing machine that, limited solely by the quantity of balls in themachine, dispenses and tees a new ball each time the preceding ball isknocked from the tee.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a golf ball dispensingand teeing machine that commences operation as a result of placing theballs in the machine.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a golf ball dispensingand teeing machine that provides a simplified adjustment for tee height.

it is a further object of my invention to provide a golf ball dispensingand teeing machine that is refined in appearance and durable in use.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combinationof the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated areattained as hereinafter more fully set forth, and specifically pointedout in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of my invention with a portion of theelectric power lead omitted to conserve space.

Fig. 2 is a greatly enlarged detail vertical sectional view of the teeportion of my invention taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic showing of the electrical circuit of myinvention.

"ice Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view of my deviceshown with a ball in position to be hit and taken on the line 44 ofFig. 1. Broken and dotted lines illustrate action of the devicefollowing the removal of the ball as well as hidden parts. The scaleused is between those of Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 5 is a similar view to that shown in Fig. 4 except that thedispensed ball has not yet been raised by the tee. Broken linesillustrate hidden parts.

Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectional view of a portion of the mechanism ofmy device taken on the line 6--6 of Fig. 4 and drawn to the same scaleas that figure.

Referring to the drawings I have used the numeral 10 to designate themain housing and have the auxiliary housing 12 secured to it. Secured tothe top of the auxiliary housing are the hopper support 14, hopper 16and inclined runway 18. These parts may all be constructed from anysuitable material, such as sheet metal and are rigidly secured togetherin any suitable manner. The inclined runway 18 terminates in a tongue 20that extends into the opening 22 in the auxiliary housing 12. Spacedfrom the tongue 20 in the direction of its inclination is a ramp 24 thatleads downward to another opening in the auxiliary housing, this secondopening being designated 26. Secured below the tongue is a switch 28that is spring loaded to an open position. This switch is known as theball switch as it is closed by the weight of the ball waiting to bedispensed. The switch has an operating lever 30 which extends into thespace between the tongue and the ramp. The switch is connected into theelectrical circuit by the wires 32 and in a manner that will be madeclear in connection with a description of the electrical wiring diagram.A pair of walls, only one of which is shown, border the tongue and theramp to prevent the balls 34 and 36 fromfalling off of the ramplaterally. The wall shown is designated 38 and serves also as a bearingforming medium for the shaft 40. The shaft 40 has the metering block 42secured to it. Beyond the wall 38 the end of shaft 40 is rigidly securedto the arm 44. This arm 44 provide a means for connecting a resilientmeans such as spring 46 between the wall 38 and shaft 40 to yieldinglyurge the block 42 into the position shown in Fig. 4. A rod 48 provides alinkage between the other end of arm 44 and the tee arm 50. The arm 44and the push rod 43 are hingedly secured together. The tee arm 50 ishingedly mounted in the housing 10 by any suitable structure such as theshaft 52 movably mounted in brace Wall 54 at one end and similarlysecured in the brace wall 56 at the other. A lever 58 is rigidlysecuredjto the shaft and is connected to the wall 54 by a suitableresilient means such as the coil spring 60 which yieldingly urges thelower end of lever 58 forward. Since the lever 58 is secured to shaft 52that is movably mounted in the walls 54 and 56, the tee arm will moveinto a position such as that shown in Fig. 4 unless it is prevented fromso moving.

An electric motor 62 is secured to the wall 56 and through a reductiongearing contained in housing 64 drives the shaft 66. A cam-like lever 68is securedto the shaft and supports the cam roller 70 and pin 72. Camlever 68 is preferably fixed in relation to shaft 66 by some means suchas set screw 74 which permits rotary adjustment between the lever andthe shaft. The cam roller 70 engages at times a cam shelf 76 which isrigidly i pin 72 as it is carried around by lever 68. The cam 3' switchis spring loaded to the closed position and is opened when the pin 72engages and moves the lever 80 to the position shown in Fig. 4. Wires 82connect the switch into the circuit in a manner that will be explainedin detail below.

Also secured to the tee arm 50 is the balance arm 84. The balance arm ispivoted to the tee arm by any suitable means such as the pin 86. Aheaded pin 83 is rigidly secured to the tee arm and extends through aslot 90 in the balance arm to stabilize the two arms in relation to eachother without interfering with arm 84 pivoting on pin 86. A pin shaft 92is secured to the balance arm and supports the tee 94. l have shown thetee as a resilient one made of rubber or the like. When the right-handend of the tee arm as viewed in Figs. 4, and 6, is raised, the tee 94extends through the hole 96 in housing and an identical hole 98 in mat100. In the normal course of events, a ball such as the one designated102 will be positioned over the tee when it rises and this ball will beteed up as shown in Figs. 1 and 4. An inclined trough 104 is formed inthe mat also and extends from the opening 26 in housing 12 to the hole98 in mat 100. As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, this trough is inclined sothat a ball placed on the trough will roll by gravity to the hole 98. Apair of wings secured to housing 12 at the sides of opening 26 guideballs emerging from housing 12 into the trough. The wings are designatedby the numeral 27.

A switch which I call the balance arm switch is secured to the tee armand is designated by the numeral 106. This balance arm switch is springloaded open, but is closed whenever tee 94 has no ball resting on it,because the balance arm engages and moves the operating lever 108 ofswitch 106 as shown in Fig. 5 and by the broken lines in Fig. 4. Theheight to which ball 102 is teed is controlled within limits by the teearm holding block 110. The holding block has fingers 112 that extend oneither side of the tee arm when the latter is in a raised position. Theblock not only limits the upward movement of arm 50, therefore, but,also, holds the tee arm against being moved sideways violently if thetee is struck by a golf club. The resilient tee will absorb any blowsintended for balls but which strike the tee also. Holding block 110 isrigidly secured to the rod 114 which is pivotally mounted in the walls54 and 56 and extends to a point outside the housing 10. A handle 116 issecured to the shaft 114 to facilitate turning it. Some suitable meansof holding the shaft in the position to which it is adjusted should beprovided and I have shown an ellicicnt and practical means in the formof a spring loaded pin 118 that is constantly urged toward the holes 120by the spring 122 or any other suitable resilient means. By withdrawingthe pin 118 from one of the holes, the handle 116 may be moved to someother position and secured there by allowing the pin to enter one of theother holes 120. As shown by the broken lines in Fig. 4, the stop blockcan be moved to a position that permits the tee arm to rise farther,and, therefore, tee the ball 102 higher. A conventional cord 124 is usedto connect the electrical system to a source of power. The leads 126connect the switch 06 and the leads 128 connect the motor to the balanceof the system as will now be described.

The electrical system consists of the three switches, the motor and thevarious connecting leads. The ball switch 28 and the balance arm switch106 are connected in series to each other, and in parallel to the camswitch 7%. The only paths for current to reach the motor include eitherthe cam switch or the ball and balance arm switches. When the machine isempty, the parts will be (except lever which will be up) in the positionshown in Fig. 4 with the balance arm as shown by broken lines. Thebalance arm switch will be closed, because the tee is empty, but theother two switches will be open. Since either the balance arm switch andthe ball switch must be closed together, or the cam switch must beclosed alone in order to complete the circuit for the motor; nothinghappens. When balls are placed in the hopper, however, they roll downthe inclined chute and the first ball engages operating arm 30 to closeswitch 28. As soon as switch 28 is closed there is a complete circuitfor current to flow through the motor which rotates and in so doingmoves the cam lever 68 to depress the tee arm. As the tee arm isdepressed, tension on the pull rod 48 overcomes the spring 46 moving theball metering block back and thus releasing a ball 34 which depressesthe arm 30 and thence moves down the ramp and into the trough 104. Atthe same time the ball 36 is prevented from reaching the switch arm 30as shown in Fig. 5. The motor circuit through the ball and balance armswitches is interrupted, therefore, but in the meantime pin 72 has beenmoved from its position of engagement with arm 80. The cam switchcircuit is complete, therefore, and the motor continues to operate. Asthe cam lever approaches the position shown in Fig. 4, the tee rises andengages the ball. The balance arm moves to the position shown in solidlines in Fig. 4 which opens the balance arm switch. At the same time,the ball 36 assumes the position that ball 34 occupies in Fig. 4 and pin72 opens switch 78 by engaging arm 80. Once more both circuits are openand the motor stops. When the ball is knocked from the tee, however, thebalance arm switch closes and the cycle is repeated. Every time a ballis knocked from the tee a new ball is dispensed until all the balls aregone. All of the action is automatic since it commences as soon as thetee is empty while a ball is closing the ball switch. Obviously thegolfer need not change his stance or otherwise disturb his practice asfar as obtaining balls is concerned. If the one hitting the ballsdesires to change the tee height for a series of balls, he may do soquickly and easily by merely adjusting the tee arm stop block to theposition that produces the desired teeing height. Also, it is clear thatmy dispensing and teeing machine is very simple in construction althoughfully automatic.

It is submitted that the invention shown and described is aptly suitedto achieve the purposes intended and is characterized by a combinationof highly useful and mutually cooperating elements that combine theirrespective and proportionate functions in accomplishing the objectssought to be obtained.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my golfball dispensing and teeing machine without departing from the realspirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover bymy claims, any modified forms of structure or use of mechanicalequivalents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. In a golf ball dispensing and teeing machine, a housing, an auxiliaryhousing secured to said housing, a ball receiving hopper secured to saidauxiliary housing; said auxiliary housing having openings therein at twoelevations, a means secured to said hopper and said auxiliary housing toconduct balls from said hopper to the upper one of the two openings insaid auxiliary housing in single file, an inclined extension of saidconducting means extending through the upper one of the openings in saidauxiliary housing, a ramp secured inside said auxiliary housingextending from a point near the end of said inclined extension to thelower one of the two openings in said auxiliary housing; said housinghaving a hole therein spaced from said auxiliary housing; a mat securedto the top of said housing and having a hole therein the edges of whichcoincide with the edges of the hole in said housing; said mat having aninclined trough therein that extends from the lower one of the openingsin said auxiliary housing to the hole in said mat and housing, a springloaded open switch secured in said auxiliary housing, an operating leversecured to said switch and extending into the space between saidinclined extension and said ramp, a ball metering block pivotallysecured in said auxiliary housing above the space between said inclinedextension and ramp, a lever arm opcratively associated with said ballmetering block, a resilient element secured by its ends to saidauxiliary housing and said lever arm to yieldingly pivot Said ballmetering block so as to stop a ball in the space between said inclinedextension and ramp, an elongated arm pivotally secured to said housingat a point near said auxiliary housing and extending in such a directionthat it passes a point below and slightly to one side of the holes insaid housing and mat, a balance arm pivotally secured nearer one of itsends to said elongated arm, a spring loaded open switch secured to saidelongated arm; an operating lever secured to said switch; a tee securedto said balance arm directly below the holes in said mat and housing;the end of said balance arm that is nearer its pivot point extendingunder the holes in said housing and mat and the other end of saidbalance arm, when no ball is on the tee, extending into engagement withsaid operating lever of said switch secured to said elongated arm, aresilient means secured to said housing and said elongated arm foryieldingly forcing the free end of said arm up, a cam shelf rigidlysecured to said elongated arm, a motor rigidly secured to said housingnear said cam shelf, a rotatable shaft secured to and operativelyassociated with said motor, a cam lever secured to said shaft, a rollermounted on said cam lever and extending over said cam shelf, a springloaded closed switch secured to said housing near said cam lever, anoperating arm secured to said switch, a pin on said cam lever engagingsaid spring loaded closed switch operating arm at times, a pull rodconnected to said lever arm of said ball metering block and to saidelongated arm to move said ball metering block against the urging of itsspring when said elongated arm is lowered, wires connecting said springloaded open switches in series with each other and said motor, wiresconnecting said spring loaded closed switch in parallel with said springloaded open switches and in series with said motor, and a means securedto said switches and said motor for connecting them to a source ofelectrical energy.

2. The golf ball dispensing and teeing machine of claim 1 furthercharacterized by having a shaft rotatably mounted in said housing abovesaid elongated arm and extending outside said housing, a block securedto said shaft at a point over said elongated arm, a handle on said shaftoutside said housing, and means associated with said handle and saidhousing adjacent said handle to hold said handle in a selected one ofseveral positions.

3. ln a golf ball dispensing and teeing machine having a housing and amotor which drives the machine through a dispensing and teeing cycle, acycle starting mechanism comprising, a tee arm pivotally secured to saidhousing, a resilient means secured between said tee arm and said housingto yieldingly urge one end of said tee arm up, a balance arm pivotallysecured to said tee arm; the pivot point of said balance arm beingnearer one end of said balance arm than the other and thereby dividingsaid balance arm into a heavy portion and a light portion, a tee securedto the light portion of said balance arm; the heavy portion of saidbalance arm being of a weight greater than the combined weight of thetee and the light portion of said balance arm by an amount less than theweight of a golf ball, a switch secured to said tee arm near the heavyportion of said balance arm, an operating lever secured to said switchand extending under the heavy portion of said balance arm; said switchbeing spring loaded open, a wire connecting said switch to said motor,and electrical conducting means connected to said switch and said motorand adapted to connect them to a source of electrical energy.

References tilted in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,868,261 Spencer July 19, 1932 1,958,956 Preston May 15, 1934 2,051,253Goehler et al Aug. 18, 1936 2,212,877 Gale Aug. 27, 1940 2,295,599 MozelSept. 15, 1942 2,464,550 Bauer Mar. 15, 1949 2,520,952 Mozel Sept. 5,1950

